As Rana Daggubati’s Ghazi is out in theatres amid a lot of fanfare for showcasing another in-depth version of Indo-Pak submarine war, there is an inside story from a minor character from the film who does a major job: the depth controller.

For those who have already watched the film, might have noticed that changing depths was the crux of the film as how the Indian submarine was able to dodge torpedoes from Ghazi.

Thiruveer, a Hyderabadi associated with a small theatre group in the city, who played the role of a depth controller in the film shared some behind-the-scene moments from Ghazi with us before even the premiere show took place.

Thiruveer said that he was in many frames where the troika of Ghazi — Rana Daggubati, Kay Kay Menon and Atul Kulkarni — were there giving him orders in the submarine’s main chamber.

“I am just a kid in front of these great actors. I was awestruck by the way these big actors prepared themselves for their characters. The way they were working on the chemistry between the characters, the way they handled the frames, the way they projected their voices it was very interesting,” he said.

Kay Kay Menon who is the captain of the Indian submarine S21, as Thiruveer said, is a very focused actor all through the film. “Once Kay Kay gets inside his character he stays in it and speaks like it from the time he exits caravan to the time goes back inside. Even he would joke in the character form. His commitment is very strong. He acted as a sardarji in the film and he was asked not to smoke in that costume and he never did it too, though he went crazy for it,” said Thiruveer.

While Kay Kay was on to it, Atul was no less in learning about the script. The actor said he was very finicky about every minute detail in the script.

“He was a perfectionist. He wouldn’t do something even with 0.1 per cent doubt in his mind. He researches and goes to next level and of course, he never went for a second shot,” he said.

While we know Rana as the hunky beast Bhallala of Baahubali, Thiruveer said that he is a very humble actor who gave respect to everyone. “Most of the time he used to mind his own business but he is a down-to-earth guy who neither didn’t make us feel as a junior artist nor he behaved as a big shot. He always maintained his cool too,” he said.

Thiruveer explained how his role was crucial to the film too. “I was almost in every frame inside the 3rd compartment. I basically tell the depth of the sub from 8 mt to 350 metres near the seabed, the varying increasing numbers tell you the intensity of the story,” he said. In fact, depth was the major factor that decided how much pressure the hull could bare and by how much distance the torpedos from Ghazi would miss the sub.

With these thoughts to share, Thiruveer is also gearing up for a lead role in a romantic flick that will start rolling from summer.